A Human rights activist speaks on the plethora of socioeconomic, political, security and religious crises ravaging the country since Nigeria returned to civil rule in 1999.
Comrade Waheed Saka is the Secretary General, Committee for Democracy and Rights of the People (CDRP) and Osun State Coordinator of Human Rights Agenda Network, a widely traveled Human Rights and Anti-Corruption activist.
AV: Rights activism and politics are like Siamese twins. But public opinion about rights’ activists these days is that they work for politicians rather than people. Is this a misconception?
Waheed Saka: Siamese? Not really, however rights activism is broader and wider than politics and political activism and in recent time, because of the evolving status of our democracy, political activism has been somehow prominent and towering above all other rights activism, like human, environmental and judicial. Nonetheless, it is a total misconception, a total misrepresentation of what activists and development practitioners stand for. It is unfortunate that anybody using a sweeping generalizes and biased statement as “work for politician” for human rights activists in Nigeria. Activism is everyday vocation, we are today, working to reform our institutions, strengthening our anti-corruption agencies, tomorrow we may be working to safeguard our environment and health sector and so on ad infinitum. Moreover, activists as citizens also have interest, political relations with politician which is where the misconception arises, my position on that is, if activists have rights to name and shame bad leaders, what forbid them to appreciate good leaders? Nothing in my opinion.
AV: You were actively involved in last protest organized against increase in pump price in Osun here. Were you satisfied with the efforts of civil societies and labour unions to force reversal of the increment?
Waheed Saka: Before I talk about my satisfaction or otherwise of the increment in pump price by APC and Buhari government, let me tell you that I have been actively involved in many protests across the country since 1994 till date. My conviction remains the same, either during June 12 struggle, students struggle, Occupy Nigeria protest or the recent pump price protest. There may be a time when we are powerless to prevent injustice, oppression and impunity, but there must never be a time when we fail to protest injustice, oppression and impunity. Back to the last protest, it was a protest against institutional impunity, in fact the announcement was illogical, insensitive and anti-people.
Instead of President Muhammadu Buhari’s government to vigorously sanitize the oil industry, what it has done was to transfer the burden to already dejected and impoverished poor masses which is antithetical to the campaign promises of APC and Buhari and therefore must be halted by popular struggle, which was why we protested on the street of Osogbo, Ibadan, Lagos and Abuja despite the political blackmail. We made our point as minority, but majority trust the government to do the right thing for the greater number of people. It was a lost battle even before we hit the street but posterity will record us as activist who protested against the anti-people’s policy of our supposed friend. Till this moment, I am disappointed we lost an opportunity to shape a new government by the people to work for the welfare and well-being of the people.
AV: After the exit of late Chief Gani Fawehinmi, rank of rights activists appears to be shrinking at high rate. Do you foresee that in few years we may not have right activists again?
Waheed Saka: No doubt Gani Fawehinmi was and remains the de facto leader and mentors of many activists in Nigeria today, and I am proud to say I belong to the second generation of Gani disciples, the first generations are the Femi Aborisades, Amitolu Shittus, Femi Falanas and many others. But before Gani Fawehinmi there were many activists and after Gani the resistance movement will continue to produce the new generation of freedom fighters in Nigeria. The Aminu Kano, Beko Ransome Kuti, Femi Aborisade, Amitolu Shittu, Femi Falana are heroes created by a certain events and circumstances. More events in Nigeria will still create more heroes of people’s struggle; I have no vestige of doubt about it.
AV: How is civil society handling the credibility burden hobnobbing with politicians has placed on it?
Waheed Saka: There is no credibility burden anywhere; every action or perceived inaction shapes credibility. Those who are questioning our credibility must state where they find us wanting. The fact is that activism against military is extremely different from activism against democratically elected government. Under military, they don’t accommodate negotiation; the language of struggle of that era was confrontation. Now under democratically elected governments, the process is more in three stages, consultation, and consolidation before confrontation. If the stages is what is regarded as hobnobbing, I think we are guilty as charged.
AV: With your experience, what challenges have you identified that impede your efforts to effect change?
Waheed Saka: Let me be sincere with you, I have no doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever happened. However, the people are also their own biggest enemies, and whatever the little challenges here and there, it is still part of the process for making our society better. From the time of renowned change agents like Martin Luther, Malcolm X, and even our own Gani Fawehinmi here, people they tried to liberates were the one calling them names either as too violent or too passive, therefore we have enough history to draw inspiration from, we remain undaunted in onerous task to change our society for the better.
AV: The believed in some quarters is that civil societies and rights groups usually keep mute whenever APC is involved and shout against any action from the opposition party. How true is this?
Waheed Saka: What is APC? As far as we are concerned, politician remains the same, however, the mind boggling revelation of corruption of the 16years of PDP is indefensible, and nobody, not even an activist will openly befriend a corrupt politician. We can never keep mute in the face of official corruption, we can never keep mute in the face of impunity, and we can never keep mute in the face of anti-people policy of government. Our position on fuel pump price increment by Buhari and APC was a fundamental testimony that we are no stooge of any political party and the misconception is a figment of imagination of those who are spreading such frivolous allegation. We will fight any government who oppress and repress our people, but we have an obligation to support a development driven administration too.
AV: From your independent findings, is Osun on the right path?
Waheed Saka: Osun is on the right path to development, let me go historical, I have been around long enough to know that we have never had it so good in the history of our state. During Akande regime, civil society considered him as anti-workers and we worked tirelessly against that government despite all the development that the old man brought to Osun. Unknown to us, politicians were waiting to reap the effort of our genuine agitation, our agitation against Akande brought in Oyinlola as governor. Civil society unconsciously constituted ourselves as opposition to every government until the electoral rape of Oyinlola second term which made us supported our comrade who incidentally was robbed of his mandate.
The issue here is that Aregbesola remains the first governor in Osun who came into power not only by popular struggle but also by a documented blueprint of what he wants to do as governor. See, I have been to more than 25 countries in four continents of the world, what we have now under Rauf Aregbesola is unprecedented in road constructions, urban and rural, in education, agriculture and environment, it is unprecedented. People talked about salary of workers, I asked them, where were they when the same government was paying 13 month salary for workers?
We all love to visit Dubai, Europe and America, some leaders developed those countries, we must support our own government to develop our own city and town too, I support the new schools in Osun, I am happy driving through my house in gbonmi, fiwasaye down to my office in Odi-Olowo, I was happy when the police armored tank repelled and arrested the robbers who terrorized banks in Ikirun my place of birth. The efforts of this administration are sure a solid foundation for future administration. We must never look back; we march forward to greatness with Rauf.
